Tauqir Sharif: Why I Am Boycotting Britain’s Two-Tiered Justice System
Secret courts and draconian citizenship-stripping powers are an affront to the values of open justice and due process that I once assumed to be my birthright on 26 May 2017, my family in the UK received a letter informing them that my British citizenship had been revoked. This started what became a legal marathon spanning the last two years. Today, I have decided to bring it all to an end.
Being British is part of who I am. I was born and raised in the UK. I attended schools and colleges there. Revoking my citizenship rights changes none of that. I have always believed that we had a robust legal system in the UK. I felt safe knowing that if I was ever to be falsely accused, I would have my day in court and be able to adequately defend myself. This is an assumption all British people should have. But this all changed when I began the process of defending myself against citizenship removal.
Firstly, my case was to be heard at a secret court known as the Special Immigration Appeals Commission (SIAC). This meant I had no access to the evidence against me, nor could I choose who I wanted to represent me. To engage with this process, my lawyers had to instruct a “special advocate” – a vetted barrister approved by the government – and tell him everything that needed to be known about me. This had to be done without me or my lawyers ever seeing the actual evidence being used against me. Secondly, defending yourself against allegations where no evidence is presented to back them up is impossible. It became clear to me that the special advocates were merely there to keep up appearances; to give an image that justice is being served. The reality could not be more different. I no longer want to be party to a system that is rubber-stamping a kind of medieval exile process against its own people
Thirdly, in the course of the legal action, it dawned on me that the state’s discretion is absolute in these cases. Those who have won their cases have only ever done so on technicalities with no bearing on the draconian nature of citizenship deprivation. Almost all citizenship deprivation cases are upheld by the SIAC courts. Based on these hard facts, I realised that I would not get the fair trial I once believed was my right as a British citizen – so I have decided to boycott the SIAC process. The whole process amounts to a two-tier justice system that has been used on an unprecedented and discriminatory scale against British Muslims. I no longer want to be party to a system that is rubber-stamping a kind of medieval exile process against its own people. I and my children will live with the uncertainty that we are forever stateless.
Affront to justice: Because I’m the child of immigrants, the UK government believes it can treat me as a second-class citizen. This is despite the fact that the work I do today, in saving lives, has been to a large extent inspired by what I believed were the British values of compassion and doing good for others. Today, we have 41 aid projects in Syria, employing more than 200 people. However, the British government has rendered me stateless, claiming I am “not conducive to the public good”. The SIAC and special advocate system are an affront to justice. They cannot exist in a country that respects any semblance of due process. I hope my actions will inspire others facing a similar situation to also boycott the SIAC, as well as lawyers who believe in due process, so that we can bring this country back to its senses.
Source: https://is.gd/5an7Wb
